Guard for a stack of objects



March '25, 1941. E. HAUCK GUARD FOR-A STACK O-F OBJECTS Filed Oct. 18, 1938 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS.

Patented Mar. 25, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 6 Claims.

This invention relates to a guard for a stack of objects and more specifically to a corner guard.

In general, it is an object of the invention 5 to provide a device of the character described, which will eificiently perform the purposes for which it is intended, which is simple and economical of construction, which can be expeditiously, conveniently and safely manipulated, and which can be readily manufactured and as sembled.

Another object of the invention is to provide a guard for a stack of objects such as cartons in a storehouse or other similar place; to pro- 15, vide such a guard which is unattached to any part of the building, which may be positioned wherever desired, which wards off trucks which come too close, which is temporarily held in place by the very truck which is warded off and 20 which spreads over a relatively large area of the stack such force as must be received and which protects the shape and/or comer of the stack.

Other objects of the invention will in part be 25 obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

The invention accordingly comprises an article of manufacture possessing the features, properties, and the relation of elements which will be exemplified in the article hereinafter described 30 and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the claims.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention, reference should be had to the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a device embodying one form of the invention; and

Fig. 2 is a view in elevation of the device shown 40 in Fig. 1 with parts broken away.

Heretofore there has been considerable damage done to material, e. g., cartons, piled in stacks in warehouses and manufacturing plants andon shipping platforms by passing trucks. These trucks are handled carelessly by unskilled labor. In passing along the aisles and around the corners of the piled material the wheels of the trucks and the wheel hubs have constantly harmed the cartons. The present invention contemplates a device which prevents this damage. This device may be moved from place to place as it is needed and yet it is so constructed that it is held in position rather than displaced by the very vehicles which it wards oil.

In the drawing, l denotes a generally coneshaped element. It is not a complete cone so that it may be fitted against a pile of material which is to be protected. The latter is shown by light broken lines. The portion of the cone 7 which is lacking may be of such shape that the 5 remainder of the cone may seat around a vertical edge of a carton. The geometric apex of the cone may or may not be at a point on that edge. The cone preferably but not necessarily is a right circular cone. It preferably has such inclination that the hub of a wheel on a passing truck will not strike the cone when the rim of the wheel is in contact therewith. A portion of the material of the cone may be bent away to form a flange l2 to'seat against the cartons or other material. Element l0 may be solid or hollow. It may be constructed of sheet iron. There may be an element or elements l4 provided to sit between the cone and the cartons and to lie flat against the sides of the carton. Elements I4 may be attached in any convenient manner to element If]. They may be welded thereto.

There is, preferably, a base l6 attached to element l0 and extending away therefrom so as to provide a rim l8 extending outwardly a substantial distance from the bottom of the cone and also extending inwardly so as to form a floor 20 on which the carton may rest. Base [6 may also underlie element l0, either immediately or remotely.

The'device operates as follows. It is positioned around the corner of a pile of material with the floor piece 20 under the pile. The wheel of a passing truck first rides onto rim I8 and then, if the path of the truck is such that it is coming closer than desired to the pile of material, the wheel rim comes against the cone element. The latter is not pushed aside or away by the wheel because, in addition to the weight of the carton stack on the floor 20, the wheel, and at least part of the weight of the truck, is resting on the rim l8, thus anchoring the guard element. The wheel, however, is fended away by the cone element and in this way is prevented from damaging the pile of material.

Since certain changes may be made in the above article and diflerent embodiments of the invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the application which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A guard for a pile of stacked objects and comprising a base, means for causing a wheel, moving on a path within a predetermined distance of the stack to be guarded, to be displaced to a path at a greater distance from the stack, and means tending to prevent the displacement of the first-mentioned means by the approaching wheel, said last-mentioned means comprising an extending flange positioned to underlie an approaching wheel when said wheel is in contact with said first-mentioned means.

2. A guard for a pile of stacked objects comprising a base upon which the stack may rest at least in part, a corner portion adapted to receive a corner of the stack and positioned inwardly of the periphery of said base, and a fending portion extending upwardly and inwardly toward said corner portion, the lowermost part of said fending portion being positioned inwardly of the periphery of said base.

3. A guard for a pile of stacked objects comprising a base and a fending portion positioned inwardly of the edge of said base and afiixed thereto and having generally the shape of a portion of a cone and having a portion of a periphery thereof geometrically similar to a portion of the surface of the stack which is to be guarded whereby said fending portion may extend in part along the exterior of the stack to protect the same.

4. A guard for a pile of stacked objects and comprising a base, means for causing a wheel, moving on a path within a predetermined distance of the stack to be guarded, to be displaced to a path at a greater distance from the stack, and means operable by such a moving wheel and tending to prevent the displacement of the first-mentioned means by an approaching wheel.

5. A, guard for a pile of stacked objects and comprising a base, means for causing a wheel, moving on a path within a predetermined distance of the stack to be guarded, to be displaced to a path at a greater distance from the stack, and means other than the weight of the pile tending to prevent the displacement of the first-mentioned means by an approaching wheel, the two mentioned means being displaceable as a unit when neither is in contact with a wheel.

6. A guard for a pile of stacked objects and comprising a base, means for causing a wheel,

neither is in contact with a wheel, and means for transmitting the reaction force from the displaced wheel to and against a substantial area of the surface of the stack to be guarded.

r ERNEST HAUCK. 

